UAlberta Lingo

Below is a list of words and terms you may hear around campus and Edmonton!

ON CAMPUS

HUB: The campus mall, with over 50 services, including restaurants, shops, and student lounges as well as 800 student residence rooms.

IC: The International Centre, located in the bottom HUB Mall, a great place to stop by to get advice, relax, and socialize for international students.

I House: International House, the University residence for Canadian and international students - located just beside campus.

ONEcard: The official identification card of the University of Alberta gives students access to campus services and is able to carry a cash balance to use for photocopying and food purchases.

PAW: The Physical Activity and Wellness Centre, a new state-of-the-art facility, located beside the Butterdome.

SUB: The Students' Union Building, home to the University Bookstore, RATT, student lounges, restaurants, and more.

ACADEMIC LINGO

Calendar:The Calendar is a resource made by the Office of the Registrar that includes admission procedures and deadlines, academic regulations, programs of study, academic standards, degree requirements, general University policies and codes, for both undergraduate and graduate students.

Faculty: A formal subdivision within the University whose mission is the administration of programs and courses relating (usually) to common fields of study and academic disciplines. Example: the Faculty of Engineering.

Fall Term: The period of the academic year that runs from September through December.

First year students in a UAlberta science lab.

Lab: University courses can be composed of lectures, seminars, and labs. The lab portion of a course is when students meet to gain practical, hands-on experience on the course matter (for example, in a computer lab or science lab).

AROUND EDMONTON

Churchill Square: One of the main gathering locations in downtown Edmonton, where City Hall and many arts and entertainment venues are housed and hosts multiple festivals throughout the year.

Garneau: The popular neighbourhood/ area surrounding UAlberta’s North Campus. This can also refer to “The Garneau”, a historic movie theatre located in the same area - they also give student discounts on films!

High Level Bridge: A large brown bridge, located just a few blocks from UAlberta, connects the University area to downtown for both cars and walking pedestrians.

Whyte: Whyte Avenue (82nd Avenue), located in the Old Strathcona historic district, is a very popular area for University students, with unique stores, coffee houses, restaurants and nightlife.

LRT: Light Rail Transit is Edmonton’s subway system, stretching from the UAlberta to the far north and south ends of the city.

North Saskatchewan: The large river that runs through Edmonton.

Oilers: Edmonton’s famous NHL hockey team.

WEM: West Edmonton Mall, the world’s largest shopping and entertainment complex. Located in the West end of Edmonton.

EDMONTON/ CANADIAN SLANG

Slang: words and phrases that are regarded as very informal, that are more common in speech than writing.

Canuck: Another way of saying someone is “Canadian”.

EH: A lot of Canadians will finish questions or statements by saying “eh” or “hey” instead of saying “isn’t it” or “don’t you agree?”. For example: “That’s a pretty good coffee eh?”

Loonie & Toonie: These terms refer to our $1 and $2 coins.

Poutine: A delicious food that was invented in Quebec, consisting of french fries (sometimes called “chips” or “fried potatoes” in other countries), covered in cheese and gravy. Definitely something to try while studying at UAlberta!

Pop: A sugary drink, for example Coca-cola or Fanta.

Toque: Pronounced “tooke”, it is a warm knitted hat a lot of Canadians wear in the winter.

YEG: This technically refers to Edmonton’s international airport, which is recognized by the acronym “YEG”, but has become a popular way of referring to the city of Edmonton, especially on social media.